The city of Black Diamond released the severance agreement for former City Administrator Gwendolyn Voelpel.

Following a public records request, the agreement was give to The Reporter Tuesday.

According to the contract Mayor Howard Botts terminated Voelpel without cause Sept. 25. The city paid Voelpel $87,015.83 as severance compensation. The agreement was signed by the former city administrator Oct. 19.

The document stated “In capacity as City Administrator Ms. Voelpel has well served the City in preparing the City for unprecedented growth.

“Ms. Voelpel, in considering her career path, determined that she should start exploring the market place for employment elsewhere. Given her high ethical standards she felt it was appropriate that she should immediately notify the City of this decision, even though it may be a significant period of time before she found another job that met her expectations.

“The City is currently in the middle of processing two land use application for developments (YarrowBay’s The Villages and Lawson Hills) that, when completed, will more than double the size of the City. This is a critical time in the City’s history, and the City is concerned that Ms. Voelpel may find alternative employment sooner rather than later, thus requiring her to leave employment with the City at a time that would not be in the City’s best interests. There is a qualified and experienced person that is currently available to serve the City as its City Administrator.”

The document stated Botts had the “authority to terminate Ms. Voelpel’s employment at any time….”

Following the termination, Botts appointed Leonard Smith as city administrator and the City Council approved the appointment Oct. 1.

Voelpel was hired by the city November 2007 at a monthly salary of $9,441.